These two are so very different and both so very fun! A question I've been asked, generally as a joke (I hope), is which one is my favorite. I usually respond with something silly like, "Whichever one isn't crying." Before having the boys, I actually wondered a bit whether I would develop a secretly-favorite twin. I can tell you now that I definitely don't prefer one to the other. I have a unique relationship with both boys, and they are incredibly different humans, but both are favorite, as Brian Regan says.

We took an expedition outside on one of the less-hot days last month. The boys loved trying to get to the grass, grab it, and put handfuls in their mouths. Trying to avoid this, I put them in the middle of the blanket, but they outsmarted me by grabbing the blanket and pulling it towards them.

The boys love Teddy, especially Micah. He just grins and laughs when Teddy walks in a room.

The upper right picture shows Teddy mid-yawn with the ginormous freckle he's had since he was a puppy.

Jonah started crawling for real a couple weeks ago. He was scooting himself around and army-crawling before that, but he's now a full-blown crawler, and boy does he make use of his skills! He will crawl to a new room and then just sit back against the wall and look around. It's pretty adorable! His favorite spots are under the high-chairs where he plays with the dangling safety straps, the floor vents, the door stops, and our TV stand where he will sit or stand and open and shut the door over and over and over.

Micah is still content to sit up and lean forward (extremely flexible leaning!) to get the toys he wants. His more relaxed personality means he's not as motivated to crawl. And I, personally, am totally fine with him doing things at his own pace. It makes my life a lot easier right now to just think about monitoring one baby's movements.

Micah is also our goofy smiler. He is always ready with a smile when strangers are around. Just yesterday at Winco, I was bagging up the groceries, and he was sitting in the cart just grinning at some people 20 feet away who weren't even looking at him. He's such a little sweetheart!

More Teddy time. He really does so well putting up with them. He lets them do pretty much anything to him. You'd think he'd stay away from them because they pull on his hair and his eyelashes and tail, but he actually chooses to go sit or lay down right next to them.

The area in front of the couch is one of two areas I hang out with the boys in. I feed them here as well after each nap and before bedtime.

We recently ventured into the land of bubbles. The boys (and Teddy) are big fans. Micah recognizes the sound of me jostling the blower to get off excess liquid, and he will just turn and smile because he knows what's coming.

A good example of their personalities:

Micah observing the bubbles, Jonah trying to figure out how to get to the source

I love these two little guys! They make life quite an adventure.

Jonah loves burrowing his head into things, as evidenced in the picture. He does it to Micah all the time, and Micah will often fall back because he can't withstand the force. He's a pretty good sport about it generally.

Because Jonah can crawl, he has been ruling the roost recently. He will go and take whatever toy Micah is playing with. Micah, though, is starting to fight back. If Jonah is within arms' reach, Micah will use his flexibility to reach and grab whatever Jonah has.

It doesn't matter if they both have the same toy--they want what the other has. They'll be fighting over a toy, and I'll get one to give to one of them, and suddenly both of them want that one instead. It's like someone else having the toy brings life to it and makes them see just how cool it is.

More playdates outside on our weed-infested grass. When our grass was installed, the landscapers forgot to turn on the sprinklers, and we were out of town for a couple days. So it took some major rehab and gentle care to get our grass green. Unfortunately that resulted in a CRAZY amount of weeds growing in the meantime. It's a work in progress!

On a Sunday afternoon, I got it into my head that it would be fun to take the boys to Tibble Fork Reservoir. Brandon was nice to go along with my plan, even though it turned out to be a big fat fail! I knew they had reopened the reservoir after having worked on it for a year, but I had no idea what to expect. I've shot there but only during winter months, so I wasn't prepared for the crowds nor for the lack of shaded places to sit. We were not prepared at all for a beach-type atmosphere. In fact, we were approached by two different people offering us things like water and sunscreen because it was clearly quite evident just how in over our heads we were. Way to go, me!

Just hanging out in our PJs.

The toothbrush on the right is their toy of choice--and the toy they fight over the most. It is quite the coveted item. I've since given them another one so that they can each have one, but they'll have none of the new one.

Jonah is loving any reflective surface these days. Here he's playing with our (dirty) mirror that we have yet to put on a wall. In fact, our house has NOTHING on the walls yet. It's a combination of being broke after buying a home, landscaping it (very minimally), and finishing the basement, as well as my hesitancy to do anything until I know how I want to decorate. Now that we own a house, I can put my own touch on it, and I want to get it right. But ironically that means that it has zero touch at the moment. All in good time, right?

We play with a LOT of kitchen utensils around here. Measuring cups, whisks, basting brushes, soup ladles. The boys enjoy them, and I'm all for them playing with things that aren't electronic and that will require some imagination.

I love looking back in the car and seeing their little feet! I don't know why.

We went to Brandon's cousin's birthday party at Hang Time and took the boys with us. It was fun, though much more difficult to get jumping time with two boys to care for. The boys loved the very gentle bouncing we did with them! I also discovered that jumping on trampolines after childbirth is NOT nearly as fun as it was prior.

My brother Tim and his wife Whitney passed through town on their way to Iowa where Tim started medical school. It was so great to see them, even though it was a super short visit.

Snapchat filters are often a last-resort attempt to make them a bit happier when I'm trying to stretch out time between naps.

We have a camera in their bedroom, and I love seeing them sleep. We have since transitioned them out of the "nests" that you see in the picture. That means that they turn every which way in their cribs nowadays. Jonah's favorite spot is at the very edge of the crib--the one spot the camera doesn't show me. We also had to lower Jonah's crib now that he's pulling up on anything and everything. I love going in to get them after naps and seeing Micah push himself up on his tummy and seeing Jonah sit up and rub his eyes while smiling.

We have finally found a sleeping rhythm, and I can't even tell you how grateful I am. I honestly don't know what did the trick finally--we were doing about 5 things at once to get them sleeping through the night. But it finally clicked. And I feel like a new person entirely. I am not exaggerating. I feel so much happier and present for the boys. I actually enjoy life (most of the time) now, where before I was just surviving between happy moments. It has been the single greatest game-changer in our 8 months with them. If I could redo things (easy to say looking back) I think I would try harder to lay the boys down drowsy to help them get used to falling asleep on their own.

Always watching Teddy. And Teddy is always present during high-chair feeding since he loves to pick up whatever scraps these two provide.

A hot afternoon walk

The trail by Utah Lake that we like to go to--it always has such great views! Here you can kind of see some of the thousands of swallows that are constantly flying around there.

Top: Hanging out with cousins at Grandma's

Bottom: Trying artichoke

With Grandma and their Payne cousins

At cousin Dayla's wedding

A really classic Jonah expression when he's curious and wants to see what's going on

Good times at church. I actually worry a lot recently at church. We've started going to the first two hours, and the boys are SUCH a distraction. Not just to us, but to so many around. They get very loud and vocal when they are tired, and since church always cuts into nap time, they are often yelling during sacrament meeting.

When the big kid takes your toy

Micah sleeping at church and being a cute, chubby astronaut

A little game these two like to play. It's adorable! Micah kicks his feet--we call it the human pinball machine--and Jonah leans on the ball pit/pool and giggles, which in turn makes Micah giggle and repeat. And on and on. It's so fun to watch!

Shopping with the twins is a lot easier now that they can both sit up. We bought this Buggy Bench on Amazon that makes my life SO SO SO much easier. The toughest part of shopping now is that both boys want to touch and eat everything in the cart, as you can see :)

Costco is the store we get stopped at the most. It's almost constant, really. I try to plan accordingly.

On the right is 3 weeks' worth of formula. I'm so grateful they will take the Costco brand! Our friends have one baby and spend more in a week on formula than we do in a month.

So happy to be able to crawl! He also loves the scale. He lays on it and hits it with his hand and watches the numbers change. I like that in this picture the numbers say ALMOST the exact weight he was at birth (4 lbs 7 oz)

Micah is actually a great kisser! Okay, I mean that he will often give kisses on command. They are extremely slobbery (he likes to involve his tongue), but they are pretty sweet.

On the right, he has managed to wipe bits of food all over his face and still look really cute.

We took this one picture on our anniversary. We just had a night at home where we ate dinner together and then did some get-to-know you questions I found on Pinterest. It was nice to have a deeper conversation that didn't involve messy diaper talk or things of that nature!

We have gone on TWO dates in the past month! So awesome! My sister and her friend babysat one night so we could go see the new Spiderman and get some dinner. A couple weeks after that, Brandon's cousin Gina hung out while the boys slept so we could go try the sushi place by our house (which we loved!). It's called Sushi Up, and the hostess is THE nicest lady ever. You get 3 rolls for $9.99. Some of the rolls have 8 pieces, some have 4 or 5. I actually like that they have fewer pieces because then I don't get stuck with a huge roll I don't like. I can always order more of the rolls I DO like. Anyway, that'll be our new go-to place for sushi.

Brandon's parents came through town and stayed with us on their way back from the solar eclipse!

The boys touching toes--similar to hand-holding.

Car seat sleep. Jonah was half-asleep and smiling so cute when I stroked his cheek.

Also, Micah falls asleep doing the funniest things in the carseat! Here he is holding onto one of his play rings.

Jonah discovered his shadow, and it was pretty awesome, to say the least! It's so fun watching them discover.

Bathtime is now in the big tub, but since Jonah things he's invincible, we've started putting them both in a laundry basket in the tub. It's getting to be close quarters, though, so we will have to adjust soon.

I let them try Nutella. They loved it (obviously). But then they got really upset when I wouldn't give them enough for their tastes.

I try not to let the boys watch too much TV, but there are times when it comes in very handy if I need to get something done urgently for a few minutes.

Jonah exploring and practicing pulling himself up

Exploring the kitchen. In the first photo, he is looking at me through the reflection on the oven. In the second photo, he's looking at himself.

Playing together and playing with a coveted item--tags. Anytime we give them a toy with a tag on it, that's the part they're interested in.

We had a little housewarming get together a couple weeks ago, and I got zero pictures aside from this one of the kids. It was fun but crazy!

Hanging out with cousin Gina

A sunrise view from our morning jogs. I take the boys and Teddy out each morning for a jog along the trail in our neighborhood. It has been so nice to get out and get some exercise in the mornings. I listen to a conference talk for the first 10 or 15 minutes, and then I listen to an audiobook or just spend some time thinking about a personal project I've been working on.

I've been working on being healthier, but MAN it's been an uphill battle. I think weaning really did a number on my metabolism. Ever since I started exercising and eating better and less, I have gained weight rapidly. How's that for unfair? But I'm gonna keep on going!

Eating in the high chairs right after our morning jog.

Jonah has been playing with these doorstops for a couple weeks now, but this day, I put Micah next to one, and he just went crazy. It was hilarious!

We got to celebrate the first birthday of our really close friends' baby this past week. Jim and Savanah met in Spain, and we happened to be there just before they got engaged. Brandon was Jim's best man (Jim was a stellar member missionary and lived in the same building as Brandon and his companion) at Jim and Savanah's wedding, and I was their photographer. They are awesome, and it is so fun to have babies so close in age with such good friends!

The evening after the birthday party, they came over for dinner at our house. I hadn't realized just how loud our boys are until every yell or grunt from them made little Olee cry! He's such a chill little guy, and he wasn't a fan of their vocalizations. But they're a cute little trio, aren't they?

If you look closely, you can see Olee's tear-streaked face.

Classic picture of the Micah grab

Improvising at feeding time so I can be hands free. The boys can technically hold their bottles, but they're not very good at it, nor do they really want to do it.

Right is Micah demonstrating his piano skills and flexibility. You can't tell from the picture, but he is basically in the splits.

A favorite spot of Jonah's

Micah's puppy dog look, and then a smile at his brother

Superhero twins

Micah has developed some really funny facial expressions recently. The left is his intense face, and on the right is his uber-cheesy grin which he does a TON

Play area number two with the mat I scored on KSL.

Left: Jonah's fake cry

Right: Jonah has had four top teeth come in all at once. They all popped through within a week of each other. He has actually been really good about it. I can't get over how grown up it'll make him look when they've completely grown in!

We are human jungle gyms these days. My pants constantly have slobber all over them.

Our little guys are 7 months old! Time has really started to fly by, and we are loving the stage they are in.

Micah

Jonah

Teddy needed a portrait as well, since he turned one the day before the boys turned 7 months

Spending a lot of time in the bumbos as we started solids!

These bibs have been a big hit with these two (and with me, for cleaning purposes). I suspect they like the bibs just as much as the food they eat while wearing them. Micah in particular loves to rub his gums on them. His first tooth is just starting to poke out today, while Jonah has had his bottom two for more than two months!

Hanging out on their soon-to-be bedroom floor at the new house.

When the babies are fussy, I try to remind myself what life is like from their perspective. Everything is huge and above them. They are completely at the mercy of others for everything from food to sleep to entertainment. It's not easy being a baby!

One day before we moved, I took a drive with the boys and just admired the area we would soon be leaving. I really enjoyed living in Springville, and we will miss our neighbors and ward friends! It was nice living in a small city for once--to leave the house to the smell of farms, to have herds of deer frequenting our yard on a regular basis, and not to worry about traffic. We have so many memories in Springville now!

It has been *so* fascinating to watch the boys progress in their hand-eye coordination. When we first got this play gym, they would just stare at the toys hanging above them. After awhile, they began trying to reach for them, later grasping them, and finally pulling them to their mouths. I can't get over how amazing it is to watch them learn new things!

I love reading with the boys, and so far, they love it, too! We read to them every night before putting them down for bed, and they both smile and try to grab for the book as I read. Jonah in particular gets a huge smile on his face when the book comes out, and he will look from the book to us and just smile. My life has been so blessed by a love of books and reading, and I hope to instill that same love in these two.

We invested in a pack of bibs like these ones to catch the drool that seems to constantly stream from these boys' mouths. With two babies, one is always teething, and the sheer volume of drool never ceases to amaze me.

This was the boys' first time in the exersaucer. They were so timid at first, barely daring to place one foot on the floor. Now they love the exersaucers! They spend a good chunk of time in them each day, and it has been great to allow me some time to wash bottles or make a sandwich.

We moved into our new house in Vineyard on June 10th. We love it! The home, the neighbors, the neighborhood--they're all so wonderful! Our area is full of kids playing outside all day, and we plan to stick around here for the long haul.

We especially love the views from our house. Our backyard essentially turns into a large farm, so we have great views that direction. Down the street a bit is a field that won't be developed because it is wetlands--it provides a lovely view of Timpanogos--and there is a little walking trail to boot! We have gone on lots of walks in our neighborhood, especially since our mailbox is in a cluster near the end of the street.

Views from down the street

At the bottom of the street (and eventually to be developed, I assume) is a huge field which, for a couple weeks, was full of these beautiful purple thistles.

The boys are THRILLED to be on a walk in the 95 degree weather ;)

Left: we learned our lesson from walking in the heat and let them go in their diapers the next time.

Right: walking in the summer rain near Utah Lake

Just a half mile from our house is the shoreline trail at Utah Lake. I love it! The views out across the lake are beautiful, and I'm so glad we have such a great option so nearby for walks and runs!

Last week, we went on a walk up Provo Canyon on the Provo River Trail. It was a nice, cloudy day, and the views weren't too shabby, either!

Exploring more of the shoreline trail. The views to the west are beautiful lake and field views, with mountains behind. The view to the east is a sharp contrast, since it's the remnants of the old Geneva Steel with Timp in the background

This picture is so perfectly *Jonah.* He always has to know what the people around him are doing, no matter the gymnastics required. He is so funny about it! He definitely has FOMO.

This was a pretty rough day with lots of screaming, double blowouts, and ridiculously short naps. I felt desperate to change up the direction everything was headed, so I pulled out the bumbos and found that they fit perfectly (if somewhat snuggly) into our sink. So the boys had their first bumbo sink bath. They loved it so much, and it was a blast to watch them enjoy the stream of water, trying to catch it in their hands.

Like most babies, I'm sure, our boys love fans. On this morning, they hung out watching the fan in our bedroom for a good ten minutes, just smiling and talking about it together.

Last year we went to Utah Valley Parade of Homes. I was pregnant and not feeling so hot at the time, but we still enjoyed it. This year, we braved the heat and the crowds with the boys once again. It was really interesting to see all the different design elements, especially given that Brandon works with homes for a job. The boys were really good sports about it!

Wearing one baby in the carrier in two different situations. On the left is how I grocery shop--wearing one with the other in the carseat in the shopping cart. It doesn't leave much room for groceries, so I will be relieved when the boys are stable sitters and can both sit in the actual cart!

Brandon's first Father's Day with the babies earthside. They are so lucky to have him!

Just being happy in their bouncers!

We get LOTS of attention when we're out due to these two guys, and so many people tell me they look identical. I've actually had people try to convince me that they are identical. It's so funny to me because to us, they look (and act) SO very different. Anyone who has spent a chunk of time with them sees their differences, but strangers never fail to let me know they think they're identical.

These rings have played a big role in our house this past month or so. Both boys do this when they sleep in their carseats--holding onto a ring as they snooze. It's so funny to me!

My sister Sarah came out for a week before our reunion, and it was so fun to hang out with her, her husband, and her daughter before they welcome a new little boy to their family in this next couple weeks! We went to this park in Orem--amazing! We will absolutely be taking the boys there on a regular basis once they are old enough to appreciate it a little more. It's the coolest park I've seen--for parents and kids.

A blurry photo of the boys' first big boy bath. They loved splashing around together.

Teddy was pretty neglected the first few months after the boys were born. We didn't have the time or energy to brush him, so when we took him in for a much-needed grooming, they basically had to bic his hair due to all the matting. He looked like a rat, and we were all traumatized by the experience, so we are trying to do better. Brandon still does the lion's share of work when it comes to Teddy, which I appreciate.

Who needs toys when you have wipes containers?! The best toys are the ones you already have laying around your house.

Mid-June to mid-July was a rough time for these guys. First they caught colds (as evidenced by the mucus in the pictures). Then they caught the stomach bug that got passed around at my family reunion. Then they caught a second stomach bug when Brandon's family came to town and stayed with us. They were troopers through it all.

Jonah caught the second stomach bug much more strongly than Micah. It was heartbreaking, to be honest. We don't hear his "in pain" cry very much (basically just when they get shots at the doctor), so hearing him sob as he dry heaved was just AWFUL. He never falls asleep in my arms, but that day, he would throw up, fall asleep, wake up to dry heave and cry, fall back asleep, etc. It was terrible to watch.

The two or three days that the boys were throwing up, we went through SO MANY TOWELS and outfits covered in vomit. I felt so bad for the little guys!

Mornings in bed with these two--anything and everything goes straight to the mouth, of course.

Tummy time was still NOT a happy time at this point (6 months), but now they are both able to roll both directions. Micah hates being on his tummy (except to sleep). Jonah is rolling all over the place as of this week. His personality makes him very motivated to move, and he is so close to crawling--just figuring out how the mechanics of it work. Micah is more laid back at this point which means he isn't as gung-ho about moving about. It's so interesting to see how their personalities affect what milestones they reach in what order.

Practicing sitting up! They can both sit up unassisted now, but they're wobbly enough that they will fall in any direction if we aren't there to help them when needed.

Jonah's sad faces are hilariously heartbreaking! They pop up frequently after a nap if I try to leave the vicinity. Both boys are becoming much more attached and aware of my presence and absence lately.

A rare (aka one-time) occurrence of sleeping during church. Neither of them like to sleep when there are people and things to watch. 9 o clock church is tough to make it to, and obviously it always interferes with naptime, so we have yet to make it to the second or third hours. If you look closely, you can actually see remnants of soggy cardboard on Jonah's face from the book I let him play with and then realized he was eating. #imanawesomemom

Hanging with Teddy. These guys love Teddy--they love when he licks their hands. Not so much when he licks their faces, which he LOVES to do. He has been such a good sport and so patient with the tugging and grasping of hair that happens each day. My one complaint with him is his lack of spatial awareness. Sometimes he will start backing up, not realizing that there are two babies laying on the floor, so I have to watch him carefully around them still. Despite that, I love that the boys will grow up with a dog to hang out with. They already have fun with him.

Our only 4th of July pictures this year--making a feeding stop before heading to one of two family parties. I really wanted the boys to see fireworks, but they were SO ornery that we had to cut the night short and take them home. I was pretty bummed about it. BUT when we got home, we realized that our view from our windows (since it's just farmland behind) was PERFECT to enable us to watch multiple aerial firework shows happening. The boys loved watching the lights and hearing the sounds of the fireworks. It was perfect! I love experiencing things through their eyes.

Ahh, sleep. It has been so very elusive for us. I know that parenting is a different experience for everyone and I shouldn't compare crosses, but I would often hear parents complaining about a 2 month old who was still getting up twice a night, and I would just sigh. We were still going strong with at LEAST 2 night wakings at 6 months with two babies. I reached a second breaking point at 6 months where I felt so sapped and like I was a fraying thread. I couldn't put the boys down for naps or nighttime without Brandon, and if I tried, it would end in all three of us in tears with a failed nap. It was severely impacting Brandon's ability to work and support us as a family, so we tried sleep training again. It hasn't been the smooth sailing experience most parents seem to report, but it is SO much better than it was. We get a couple hours once the boys are down for the night where we can eat dinner or do things for ourselves (like write a blog post). I know sleep training is a SUPER charged topic, but we did what we felt was best and necessary for our family, and I feel so much more able to parent the way I want to now that I'm not dreading each naptime and spending all my time a sleep-deprived wreck. Hooray for sleep!

Two happy boys who make life so much better! Most twin moms say that life with twins doesn't get easier, it just gets different. I completely disagree. Perhaps they are just too far distanced from the newborn phase, but I feel like life is so much better right now with these two (probably coinciding with their better sleeping habits). I'm not sure how I'll feel once they're rambunctious toddlers, but I feel like I'm actually enjoying life with them now, where before, it was so so hard. Obviously there have been SO many sweet and joyful moments every day since their birth, but overall life was so chaotic and hard. There are still definite struggles, but I feel so much less drained now than I used to.

Kisses (and a wake up call) for Daddy

Micah is such a happy chappy!

Exersaucer time. These boys are fully on formula now (except for the odd defrosted bottle from my small frozen stash). It was tough getting Jonah to start on it because he hated it so much. I honestly felt really bad about it because good gracious, formula tastes so gross! I felt bad asking them to eat something I wouldn't want to eat. But pumping was adding so much stress to my day, and as soon as I tried reducing my pumps per day to two, my body was like, "Oh, we're done here!" And I was actually relieved. I'm so grateful I was able to provide them with breastmilk for 6 months, but it has been a blessing to my mental and physical health to be done with pumping.

Hanging out with cousin Jameson who was born 24 hours after them! We had Brandon's family come stay with us for the Keyes Reunion. Holy craziness. We had only been in our house a couple weeks when everyone came--17 people staying at our house--9 of them children under the age of 7. It was kinda chaotic, but we survived!

Some of Jonah's faces

Some of Micah's faces

Trying lemons for the first time--both of them were fans!

We spend a LOT of time on this couch and on the area rug in front of it.

I'm trying to savor the one-on-one moments with both my boys. I want them to always feel that they have unique, individual relationships with their parents. I always say that they are individuals first, twins second.

Two happy times--post bath and post nighttime sleep.

Just this past couple weeks, we've had the boys eat their solids in the highchairs instead of the Bumbos. It's been so fun, and it makes them look so much older to me.

Our kind friend Heather gave us these balls which we've put in a blow-up pool for the boys to play in. They both love it, though they still topple over fairly quickly.

Still getting that whole sitting up thing figured out

Brother time on the blankets Great Grandma Young made for them

This morning, I was watching the two boys play next to each other, and I just had this very strong feeling come over me that I was so grateful that they have each other. I know many twins moms who just bask in the glory of twins, but I have honestly had few moments where I felt, "I'm so glad we had them at the same time." But now I can feel that. I thought of just one of them playing on their own, and it made me so sad. I love that they always have a playmate.

The other day, I had Micah in my lap and Jonah laying right next to me. Jonah started trying to eat Micah's PJ'd feet. Micah got annoyed and started kicking, and it turned into both boys just laughing with each other for a few minutes. Micah would kick his feet to make Jonah laugh which would in turn make Micah laugh. It was such a sweet and funny moment--the first time that they have made each other laugh on purpose with no help from me or Brandon.

When I stopped pumping, it converged with the boys having a stomach bug, the end of the Maxwell Reunion I had been looking forward to for months, and truly HORRIFIC night of barely any sleep. The day we got home from the reunion, I was suddenly a mess. I got my Dad's nostalgia bug, and I thought maybe it was brought on my that. But I just kept crying and crying at weird times, and I felt so hopeless. I felt like I didn't like being a Mom. It was so sudden, and it lasted about three days. It was HARD. I haven't felt anything like that since my mission. Looking back I realize it was probably primarily my body adapting to the changing hormones from weaning, but WHY does noone talk about that?! I know weaning can be an emotional thing because of the end of a special connection with your baby, but what I went through was a whole lot more intense than that. So just an FYI to any nursing moms out there, weaning can bring on some depression. I'm so grateful that it ended as quickly as it started, but it was such a hard couple of days where I felt such a darkness envelop me.

In the spirit of this age of memes, this is probably what people think life with twins is like...

...THIS is an equally accurate representation of life with twins these days, though.

Jonah has recently had a renewed obsession with his hand, and it is the best! I love watching him hold it up and stare at it. It's so adorable!

Their pose when they see the solids come out and they can't get them in their mouths fast enough

We basically spaced Teddy's birthday which is pretty much the story of his life. He's always an afterthought, poor guy. But we tried to give him lots of extra love once we remembered.

The boys' first time trying frozen yogurt. HUGE fans, obviously.

They are both in the stage where ANYTHING that ANYONE is eating consumes their interest completely. They want it so much! Here Jonah is displaying his very good taste by coveting my bacon.

Just being silly in the bumbos!

This was such a huge day for the boys (and for me)! Their first time riding in the cart! It means that grocery shopping is simplified for me quite a bit, and it's so much happier for them, as well!

For the last three years, one of the highlights of my summer has been going up to Albion Basin in Alta to see the incredible wildflowers. If you have never been, I would HIGHLY recommend that you go. The wildflowers are at their peak right now! Last Monday, my mom, my sister, and my niece and nephew came with the twins and me to see the wildflowers. That day didn't pan out quite as I had hoped since parking was a nightmare and I wasn't as well-prepared as I should have been, but we still got to see the most beautiful flowers. Today, my mom and dad came with me for round two, and this time we took the shuttle. It was pretty heavenly to walk among all the purples, reds, whites, pinks, yellows, and greens once we got up to the summit. I got to wear the twins in our TwinGo carrier--my first time trying the dual carry option. It was great! They both fell asleep for the majority of our time walking :)Despite the hassle of toting my camera along with all the other gear I require nowadays (packing for an expedition with twins is no joke, my friends), I am so glad I did. Unfortunately, though cameras are wonderful and mine is on the more capable end of the spectrum, they just can't capture scenes like today's. You have to go experience it in person to really appreciate it. Despite that, I tried to capture what I could :)

My mom is the one who really fostered an appreciation of nature within me--I'm so grateful for her knowledge and love of God's creations!

Dad being the pack horse, as usual!

Thankfully, we snapped a shot while the twins were still awake

Wildflowers as far as the eye can see--and much farther off the my camera could capture

Poor Micah in the back doesn't look as comfortable sleeping as I had hoped he was